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Abstract

The core symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may be related to atypical engagement of the brain’s reward system. We investigated whether visual reinforcers, images depicting restricted interests, are processed abnormally in ASD, as a marker for reward system dysfunction. We collected electroencephalography (EEG) while 20 ASD and 20 typically developing (TD) control participants, aged 14-20, performed a visual target detection task. We evaluated differences in the late positive potential (LPP), a marker for emotional processing, as well as trial-to-trial variability in the visual P1 response, which may indicate ‘noisier’ processing of visual reinforcers. We found greater LPP amplitude for high- and low-interest images, relative to neutral, with no significant group difference. In contrast, for the P1, we found overall greater amplitude and amplitude-variability in the ASD group that did not differentiate between conditions. This study provides new insight into processing of visual reinforcers in ASD.